


I Want You to be Happy

by Anonymous



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types
Genre: ;), Cyberstalking, First Kisses, Fluffy, M/M, Mature themes later, Requited Love, Slow Burn, Some angst, if you want the dirty, irl stalking, reposted because i fucked up, slowburn, stalker au, stalker komaeda, they just dumb as shit
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-23
Updated: 2020-02-21
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:41:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,180
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22378885
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Hajime has a crush on Nagito Komaeda, but he knows better than to push his luck. Besides, he has enough on his hands to worry about. Like the fact that he is convinced he has a stalker on his hands, even though no one else believes him.
Relationships: Hinata Hajime/Komaeda Nagito
Comments: 26
Kudos: 175
Collections: Fanfic Anonymous





	1. Chapter 1

It started out as a suspicion. However, it wasn’t a thought Hajime intended to pursue. One too many horror movies before bed always made his mind race, and he’d readily admit he was guilty to doing that that first night.

The remote that once laid on his chest had fallen to the floor, but he was too comfortable to roll off the couch to retrieve it. The huge bowl of popcorn mixed with chips he had been snacking on was almost just dust from the flavorus grain fibers that once covered the junk food. His unreasonably large bottle of soda only contained a few more sips. It was safe to say he was on his way to one of his infamous sugar comas, something he often fell victim to during his highschool days. Grimacing, he looked away from the TV and wondered how bad he would feel in the morning before work.

He felt muddled. There were creaks in the small house he rented, but nothing unusual. Then again, the horror movies sharpened his hearing and his mind was whirling in the fog of unhealthy choices.

So Hajime wasn’t sure if it was real. He was so close to sleep, it was coaxing him into its lull with the promise of a less aching belly inside his dreams. No, he couldn’t be certain he really saw a shadow through his curtains, making a dark blob on his floor from the light of the street lamp across the road. And he really wasn’t able to tell how long he had been awake to see that same shadowy figure standing there because he fell asleep before it crossed his mind to be afraid.

None of that was substantial evidence. He knew that in order to really bring a theory to life, he needed more proof than a sugar hazed delusion. Luckily for him, he had all the time in the world to think about his encounter since he was a jobless college student with the easiest classes of his life stacked in the form of textbooks on his desk, each coated with a layer of dust.

Now, he wasn’t obsessive about what occurred that night. Hajime tended to spend his time doing odd tasks on the internet for some quick cash, playing video games, helping his friends study, and other normal college student things. However, when night came and his house was empty once more, his thoughts always strayed back to that night. It was crazy to be so focussed on that, but he really, really had nothing better to do with his time. It wasn’t like he had a conspiracy board. He’d just lay awake some nights and play out different scenarios in his head if he wasn’t so drowsy.

And then, almost three weeks later, a package arrived at his house. He didn’t order anything, and his parents rarely gave him gifts since they already were paying for his place and his college. Upon opening it, he found a tie. It was two tones of green with an interesting design, something he would have bought for himself if he saw it at the store and had enough money. He brought it to his bathroom and tied it on, eyebrows furrowed as he stared at his reflection. It looked very nice on him. He didn’t usually have such vain thoughts, but it suited him.

Hajime opened his phone to a groupchat with his friends. He left a very simple message, a thank you to the anonymous donor that decided to give him a gift. Daring them to tell him who did it. Said he’d get them a coffee for their kindness. Left it at that.

It was only as he was leaving his house, tie still on whilst he juggled his bagel and his bookbag, that he remembered something. Four days ago, he had spilled a box of orange juice on his shirt when fumbling with his keys at the door. He was sad when he couldn’t get the stain out of his tie and had to toss it away. It was his only tie that wasn’t black, though it wasn’t anything special. It was a beige color and his friends hates it, but it was nice to have something different than the plain old usual black.

He could see an observant friend noticing him without it and deciding to give the gift. However, it had only been a handful of days since he last wore it. There was never a week where he wore it twice, he rarely wore that beige tie once in a fortnight.

“That’s… you think you have a creepy neighbor?” Soda sipped his straw though there was no liquid in the bottom of his glass.

“I… I didn’t say that at all,” Hajime groaned, taking a bite of the muffin he got. His parents would kill him if they spotted him eating the way he does, but he loved the cafe by campus. “I was just saying it’s odd that this tie thing happened and the shadow thing… Unless you want to come clean and tell me if someone in the group gifted it? And why?”

“I already asked. No one knows what you are talking about.” Soda’s eyes drifted to the colorful tie, noting that although it freaked Hajime out, he was still wearing it. “It does kinda suit you though. If you do have a stalker, they have good tastes.”

Hajime glared at him. “I’m not joking. And I’m not necessarily saying I am being stalked. I just think it’s really weird and not a coincidence or shipping error.”

Soda sighed and pushed his empty glass away. He took a bite of his bagel and chewed on it as he thought of something to say before spotting something outside the diner window. “Ah, he’s here again.”

Hajime tensed. His back straightened, shoulders squared, hands quickly fumbled to push his chair in closer. The chime above the door jingled and in stepped in their campus’ anomaly. Nagito Komaeda crossed the aisle of the small diner, passing Soda and Hajime without a glance spared in their direction, and headed to the counter. Hajime strained to hear the other speak to the waitress. “May I have a mint tea to go, please?”

He was getting mint tea today. Hajime smiled at the thought of crossing him on his way to his class, catching a whiff of his fresh breath behind his gentle smile.

Nagito was an oddball. He was a sophomore like Hajime. He lived outside the dorms like Hajime. He dressed nicely, usually a shirt and vest with a blazer occasionally when it was cold. It wasn’t uncommon for some of the serious majors to dress well, such as health majors, pre-laws, and sometimes business majors. Hajime dressed well for a criminal justice major, but he practically wore his major on his sleeve.

Nagito Komaeda didn’t. Ever since freshman year, he’s heard rumors and wonders about who exactly he was. People spotted him in a multitude of different classes. English, engineering, psychology, chemistry, teaching, nursing, and even one of Hajime’s criminal justice classes this semester. Needless to say, no one could figure out what he was doing. Any attempt to find out what his major was by asking the man himself was just met with a smile and a simple, “I’m sorry, I don’t think we have met! I’m Nagito Komaeda.”

Apparently, he never showed up for any exams, so he might not have been in the eleven different classes he was spotted at last semester. Then again, he supposedly suffered a breakdown freshmen year and might have gotten permission to take exams in a private room.

Needless to say, he was fascinating from the way he was a complete mystery, to his white, natural hair.

“Soda-kun, Hinata-kun, good morning.” And he was standing in front of their table. Hajime blushed, fumbling with his napkin to clean off some of the blueberry stains on his hand from the muffin. Soda rolled his eyes, reluctantly looking up to Komaeda.

“Yeah, morning.” Soda wasn’t the biggest fan of the student after he supposedly passed an engineering class with an A when Soda was only able to pull off a B-. Then again, nothing was pat in stone when it came to Komaeda.

“I was just heading to the library before our class together, Hinata-kun. Do you remember the page numbers again?” His voice was breathy and light. Hajime felt his insides squirm.

He looked to Soda for help, unable to bring his gaze to meet the boy. He felt like his cheeks were burning, and suddenly his collar felt tight. A hand clasped around his tie and tugged him closer until his nose was brushing against Nagito’s. Those sweet, innocent grey green eyes stared into his, now filled with longing and excitement. “C’mon Hajime, why don’t you look at me?”

Nagito pushed his chair back and straddled his lap, grip still tight on his tie. “I can give you something worth watching.”

“Sorry, he pulled an all-nighter working on some assignment.” What. Hajime blinked and noticed he was still in his seat, staring at his muffin. Nagito was still standing by the table, politely nodding to the excuse Soda brought.

“That’s no good. Please rest when you can,” Nagito smiled when Hajime lifted his gaze to acknowledge him, face now pale at his imagination.

“I-I will, thank you.”

“Komaeda!”

“Ah!” Nagito perked up. “That’d be me. I’ll see you both later… Oh, but wait a moment.”

He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket. It was a creamy color and looked as if it was made of silk. It felt like it was silk too, as Nagito reached over and dabbed Hajime’s cheek, just to the side of his lips. And the blush returned.

Nagito pulled away and showed the stain. “Sorry if I startled you. It was a blueberry smear.”

With that, he gathered his drink and shoved the handkerchief into his pocket. When he was at the door, he turned back once more to say one last thing before disappearing.

“That tie looks very nice on you, Hinata-kun.”

Once the door closed, Soda began hitting his head on the table. “God, I fucking hate you.”

“What?” Hajime exclaimed, bringing a hand up to affectionately trail a finger down the side of his tie. “I didn’t do anything.”

Soda shook his head, pulling out his wallet. He took out money for a tip and stood up. He took his muffin with him as he did, waiting for Hajime to get up as well. “Ever since the party freshmen year, you’ve been all goo-goo eyes for that weirdo. Just ask him out or move on or something. It’s gross.”

“I… I have no clue what you mean.” Hajime finished off his muffin and followed Soda out.

“You don’t know what I mean?” Soda raised an eyebrow. “Bro. We go to this cafe every Tuesday and Thursday when he comes in. We always study in the library nearby the table he always sits at. You get all gushy right when he leaves and usually talk about him for the next five minutes. It’s kinda strange.”

“Hey, at least I don’t flip out at the mere mention of Sonia-”

“My Princess!” Here we go again. Hajime rolled his eyes with a smile, ready to have his ear talked off.


	2. Two of a Kind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nothing is ever as it seems.

Hajime stumbled into his home. It was Friday, maybe early Saturday morning when he closed the door behind him and kicked off his shoes. The best part of college ended for the night, and though he wasn’t the type to party every weekend, it helped to take his mind off stressful things like who he was and who he was supposed to be in another two years of this hellhole. It also was always a plan to repeat the events of his favorite party, the one that set his sights on Nagito Komaeda.

But that didn’t happen. He wasn’t there. He hadn’t been to another party since that first one, which Hajime supposed he could understand as Nagito didn’t really seem very happy being at that one party to begin with.

His phone buzzed. He looked at it as he swayed, trying to pour a glass of milk into his system. 

In this new age of technology, information was truly a click away. It made stalking easier, and though Hajime knew he should be careful online given the fact he believed that he possibly had a stalker, but he never stopped posting online. It was a way to brag about how great his life was going when in actuality it was rather boring and pathetic. He didn’t exactly have many followers, but it was enough to not know them all by name or remember when or why he followed them. It was enough to sometimes get an anonymous message to his social media app.

They were always simple questions. What’s your favorite color? Green. If you could bring anyone back from the dead, who would it be? My grandpa. What’s your idea of a perfect first date? Chilling back, getting food, maybe playing video games. Dog or cat person? Dog.

The newest one on the app appeared in big letters on his screen. “What is your favorite thing to do?”

He wrote back a small answer. Hanging out with friends, playing soccer, and playing videogames. He never put much thought into his answers, but after writing it, he couldn’t help put go to his page and then to a spot he tended to frequent every so often. 

Nagito Komaeda’s page was usually empty. Very few photos were available, but all of them were nature spots from campus or pictures of the tea he would get at the cafe. He posted again today, it seemed, though it had been two weeks since he’s been online from the looks of the page. 

“Quiet night curled up and reading This Side of Paradise.” It was followed with a picture of the book next to a lamp and plain white mug. Hajime had never read the book. He did know that curling up under a blanket sounded nice right about now though. Lazily, he threw his phone and then tossed himself onto his bed. The moment he closed his eyes, he was ready to pass out. 

His house always had its creaks and groans. He didn’t notice the sound of something, possibly a tree branch, scraping against his window, until that night. It didn’t matter. 

Hajime woke up that morning to a major headache. After stumbling to the bathroom to choke up some watery residue from last night, he headed to the kitchen to find a glass of something waiting for him. Had he… made a hangover cure when he was dizzy last night? That didn’t sound like something he’d do, but he didn’t hesitate to chug it down.

The rest of the day was lazy. He did his work until late, texted his friends, then passed out on the couch. It wasn’t too different from his usual saturday, but what was different was that he woke up to the Sunday sun blinding him and with a blanket covering his body. He hadn’t remembered grabbing a blanket.

It didn’t matter. It didn’t. After all, today was Sunday. That word loosely translated to Free Day, but it was always spent the same. It was just like every other day, except he’d shower in the morning, get dressed nicely, then head off to the library. 

He turned on music as he brushed his teeth. He flossed, used mouthwash, the full nine yards. In the shower, he opted out of using his 3-in-1 bottle for individual shampoo, conditioner and bodywash. Hajime felt nice and clean once he was done, glad to be feeling his best. He put on a warm colored shirt and pants. He didn’t wear a tie for once. Once, he read an article about having the element of surprise. This deviation was a surprise, seeing as Hajime never left two buttons undone on his shirt. 

“Hey,” Hajime greeted to himself in the mirror as he combed through his hair, “I was just wondering if you, uh… knew where to find books from that guy- erm, author named Francis Key Gerald? No, Francis Key Scott Ger…”

He googled it on his phone. “Francis Scott Fitzgerald? Oh, well, I heard so many good things about uh, The Great Gatsby and This Side of Paradise. You like his work as well? Maybe you could recommend some? I-If you want, we can, uh, r-read at the cafe across the street together…?”

He stared at his reflection and sighs. He wished he could know what to do, but it seemed this Sunday would end up like the rest. 

His bookbag was lighter without the notebooks and laptop for his classes, but the weight on his shoulders was heavy as he went straight to the library. Luckily, he didn’t cross any of his friends to get teased for what he was obviously doing. Sometimes Soda would be sitting on a bench and would join him halfway in his walk to try and convince him to go to the arcade with him, but his pestering would always cease upon reaching the heavy library doors. 

The smell of books and an air freshener greets him as he stepped into the large space. There was a handful of people on the first floor, mostly using the computers to print out assignments. He passed by without giving them much thought. The elevator has been out of order for the past five years, so the dusty staircase was his only choice in order to get up to the third floor. 

There were four floors in the building, each with a multitude of sitting places and books to explore. However, as always on Sundays, the object of his affections was going to be on the third floor, cuddled up in the corner with a stack of books to flip through.

He pushed the door open to the third floor and began to walk straight towards an empty table near the one he expected Nagito Komaeda to sit at. It… was around the time he was supposed to be here. Maybe he was running late…? Hajime walked to the shelves and took a book off the shelf, something about World War 1, then went back to his chosen seat. Before he sat down, he heard a thump nearby. It was probably nothing. It wasn’t worth his time. He had to wait. 

“Ah, wait! Hinata-kun!” His heart fluttered. He knew that voice. It sounded like angels singing, and it was even coming from somewhere high that he couldn’t see.

“Uh, Nagito?” He called hesitantly, setting his book on the table.

“C-Can you please, uh, i-if you aren’t busy, help me? I’m in the next aisle. The ladder fell.” 

Hajime walked over and peered past the first aisle to see Nagito gripping the shelf and a ceiling beam like his life depended on it. The ladder, as he said, was knocked on its side. Clumsy. He smiled a little as he approached. “How did this happen?”

“I’m slipping. Please.” Oops. 

Hajime moved closer. He built himself into a power stance before holding the boys legs. “Okay, let go. I’ll lower you down.”

Nagito didn’t hesitate to drop his arms in exchange for reaching to cling to Hajime, eyes wide. He must really dislike heights. Using the shelves and Hajime as a makeshift ladder before the boy could place him back on the ground, Nagito sighed with relief, excited to be on solid ground again. He glanced to Hajime and grinned. 

“I’m glad you came when you did. I was worried about falling on the ladder and getting hurt.” Nagito shook his head, then picked up a stack of books he had set on a shelf. “I really am lucky you were around. Thank you.”

“Y-Yeah, it’s nothing. Right place, right time.” Just like every Sunday. Except for this time, he did more than greet the boy or say goodbye. They were talking. He could do this. “Do you, uh, need help getting a book from up there?”

Nagito grimaced at the ladder, shaking his head. “It really isn’t worth it if the ladder is acting up. I don’t want you getting hurt for me. Besides, there’s other books I wanted more.”

I’d do anything for you if you’d give me the time of day, Hajime thought. He felt like a sick puppy, but he knew it was his fault. He was the one avoiding talking and looking at Nagito out of pure nervousness all the time. 

“I can help you carry your books then?” Nagito looked back to him. Biting his lip, he nodded and held his books out.

“If that’s really what you want. I know you must be busy studying for history, right?” He saw the book Hajime grabbed? He must have just missed seeing Nagito then, which was odd. He thought he’d spot that white hair immediately, but it seemed his crush just escaped his line of vision. With a shrug, Hajime took the books, their fingers brushing as he did. If he was a braver man, he would have possibly reached to hold Nagito’s hand. But, unlike a classic rom-com movie playing out before him, Nagito jerked his hand away as though he had touched lava. He… he always did that. 

Regret bubbled in Hajime, knowing the reason, but not having the courage to say anything and bring things up to the other. 

“L-Let’s just go. There was a book on aisle four, I think it’ll be pretty low too.” 

Changing subjects, that’s a good sign, right? Hajime happily went around the library, watching Nagito scan through the codes on the binds of the books, plucking out the ones he remembered in his head. The stack was growing a bit too big for Hajime, his chin tucked just above the book Nagito just piled on. 

Nagito finally looked back at him, a small smile on his face with a raised eyebrow. “You can put the books down if you want. I just need one more.”

“Please,” Hajime wheezed under the weight before waddling out to the open area of seats. He began to head to Nagito’s usual place before pausing and staring at his lone book at the table he had chosen. The table he usually watched didn’t have any items at it, so Nagito shouldn’t be expecting Hajime to set his things there. He didn’t say anywhere specifically. This could be his chance to grow a bit closer to the other. He could talk to him, and read with him, and bond. 

He placed the stack by his book with a satisfied grin before turning back to see Nagito rounding the corner empty handed. He waved, coming over. “At least only one book was checked out from my list. I think I’ll be here a while with these ones anyways. Thank you for your help, Hajime.”

“It’s no problem at all!” Hajime smiled, waving his hand. Nagito took a seat and grabbed one of the books from his stack. “A-Actually, you seem to know this library better than the staff itself. I was wondering if you could help me find a book by, erm, Scott Fitzgerald?”

“I… didn’t take you for the type to like his work,” Nagito admitted, a smile playing on his lips. “What book were you thinking of?”

Hajime remembered the one he saw on the list earlier. “I’d die for you.”

Nagito nodded his head and stood. “Wait just a moment. I’ll be back with it soon.”

As he was searching, Hajime looked over the books Nagito stacked on him. He hadn’t paid attention before due to staring at Nagito the whole time, but now he could focus. The books were spread out between many interesting things. Some were about cold cases, a few were about videogames and their development, and then there was one about soccer. Hajime smiled as he skimmed his fingers over the cover of the top book. 

They really were alike.


	3. For The Record

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hajime tries to get a recording of his stalker.

Hajime’s heart fluttered when he opened up his social media to find Nagito had made a new post right after their time spent together on Sunday. That was twice in two days, something completely unheard of before then. It cheered him up considerably, since his day with Nagito was spent with ‘reading’, some small talk, and once Hajime went to use the bathroom. He was glad that Nagito was still there when he came back, because each time his eyes went to the next line on the page, he instead found his staring at Nagito’s small smile as he read. Occasionally, Nagito’s eyes found his and a confused look crossed his face before sliding his book closer, asking if he wanted to read along. 

He wanted nothing more than to scoot closer and pretend to read. Maybe he’d have a better whiff of the coconut shampoo the other used or the scent of the tea on his tongue that darted out occasionally to wet his lips. 

The post was simple. It was of a book Hajime helped him find at the end, something by Akutagawa. He thinks it was a collection of the man’s short stories. It was sat beside a small cup of a steaming hot beverage and Hajime frowned at the thought of not being invited to get it with him, but he ignored it upon reading the caption. 

“Having the best Sunday in a while ^^ Even was saved today like a princess.” 

He liked the post, but thought better than to comment on it. He just spent so much time with Nagito that he should give him some space, right? And he gave Nagito a little scare as he left. 

Hajime was just packing up after finding Nagito’s book amongst the shelves when he spotted the boy’s handkerchief on the ground. He picked it up and held it close, noticing it still had the small stain from when Nagito cleaned his cheek. Nagito always looked so clean and kept up, it was surprising he didn’t wash it already. Or maybe it was stained. Guilt crept into his mind as he raised the cloth to his nose, taking a sniff to see that it really hadn’t been washed if the scent of blueberry proved anything. Should he offer to do it for him since it is his mess? 

He ran his thumb over the fabric in thought, noting how strange the handkerchief was. It was silky on one side with a sewed line down the middle, as if when it was made they didn’t have enough fabric. It likely wasn’t professionally made. The other side wasn’t even the same material, but one that matched the color well enough. 

He folded the fabric and noticed another small stain just peeking out of the seam. It was orange-y. He didn’t know Komaeda liked oranges. 

“H-Hinata-kun!” He jumped as he heard Nagito yell. His bookbag was held tightly to his side as he practically ran over, pale as a ghost. He had never seen Nagito run before, much less look so worried, even when he was dangling in the library. 

“S-Sorry! You dropped this!” Hajime offered it to him. Nagito took it, but didn’t stop staring, as if trying to pick apart his sentence. “I-I saw it was stained- My ties at home are the same material. I have some stuff that might get those out, if you want.”

Nagito finally broke his gaze to tuck the handkerchief away. “N-No, that’s fine. I really have to go now.”

“Don’t let me keep you!” Please don’t leave, I feel like I fucked something up and you aren’t giving me any room to figure out what. “I’ll see you around.”

Nagito threw him a smile before darting out the library doors. 

He wouldn’t call himself lucky, but he was happy the moment he got home, he had another issue to think about. It was better than the constant nagging in the back of his head about the perfect boy he could barely manage to talk to. 

When he got home, he buckled down to finish his homework, then decided to focus on his little ‘possible stalker’ problem. At this point, he wasn’t entirely certain of his belief. He tried to bring up the strangely placed items to Chiaki, one of his good friends, but she reminded him that he gave spare keys to three different people who’d come in at random all the time. There’s been a few times he’s woken up to Soda chucking an empty milk carton at his head, telling him he had to ‘get off his lazy ass’ because he was ‘all out of milk’. 

He asked Soda if he came over, but his friend was too drunk to remember anything clearly, since he claimed Sonia flirted with him too. Fat chance, but he could have his dreams. 

Chiaki did offer him good advice. “If you don’t feel safe enough, why not download an app or get cameras? Then you will be able to see what might be going on.”

“Cameras?” Hajime paled. “Those are expensive as hell.”

“There might be something you can get for your computer that you can dim considerably. Actually, my friend who had bad paranoia told me about an app they downloaded that records you in your sleep. You can’t deactivate it unless you unlock your phone, and it records any movement. It’ll be helpful, unless you move a lot in your sleep. Just put it in different rooms or outside your house, but hidden.”

“I’m not leaving my phone outside,” Hajime grumbled as he found the app, remembering Chiaki’s advice. He got ready for bed, then set up his phone near his bed. With any luck, there’d be enough to prove his hypothesis. After staring at his phone for a minute, he noticed a little flashing light on the front by the camera. That’s… annoying for an app. He turned the phone over and prayed it didn’t affect the quality of the evidence he was getting. 

Hajime slept soundly that night, though that wasn’t surprising. He could sleep through an earthquake. Still, upon opening his eyes, he sat up and grabbed his phone, which was flipped to face upward. Had he checked it in the middle of the night. Using his thumb, he unlocked his phone to look at the recordings. 

There was only one detected disturbance, and it lasted two minutes. He pressed play and held it close to his ear to better hear the grainy audio. 

He heard shuffling, then his bedroom door creak open. Hajime glanced over to see it was open a crack, the hallway pitch black. Gulping down his nerves, he hoped Soda or someone would speak up to try and wake him, but he heard nothing of the sort. 

The shuffling turned into steps. It didn’t sound like the person was trying to hide their presence. A crinkling sound filled his head. At first, he thought it was a bag, but then he heard a familiar sound with it. They sat down on his bed. 

Suddenly, he felt a scrap as his phone was picked up. He closed his eyes to imagine the blank blob of the person staring at the light. With the noises, he imagined the stranger shifting onto the bed more as the sound of Hajime’s quiet huffs from sleep became more audible. He could imagine the phone being held to his thumb until the sound of his phone unlocking appeared. The stranger leaned back with a little sigh. Within the next ten seconds, the audio cut off completely. 

Hajime called up his friend. “Soda, I swear to god I’m taking your key.”

“W- Hajime? Why?” Soda replied. “I didn’t do anything!”

“You didn’t come over last night?” Hajime asked, anger taking over the fear in his bones as he eyed the partially opened bedroom door. 

“I just drove back this morning? Remember?” Hajime hung up without any further questions. The audio stated it was recorded at 1:34 AM. Soda wouldn’t have driven back so late from his parents home. Hajime began to go down the list of everyone who had a key, besides his parents. They were strict and did have a key, but they wouldn’t drive over just to snoop through his phone. 

“Chiaki, I got an audio. You didn’t come over, right?” 

“No.”

“Cool, kind of thought so. Can I have the key back?” Hajime didn’t hesitate in his request. “It’s not that I don’t trust you, but-”

“It’s fine. I can give it back to you today after classes if you want. My last one is at two.”

“Perfect, I’ll meet you at Mama’s cafe?”

“Works for me.” Chiaki yawned. “Good luck.”

“I’ll need it.”

Hajime scrolled through his contacts, then dialed the last number. “Fuyuhiko.”

“What’s wrong?” Fuyuhiko had a way of knowing things. He wasn’t a ‘soul friend’ like Soda, nor was he a fun friend like Chiaki, but he was someone who understood people way too easy for being a self-proclaimed loner. He also was always the designated driver and mom friend of the group, though he denied it. 

“I need to take your key back for a bit.” 

“Fair. I think Peko has it from the last time we had to get your sorry ass home. One second.” There was shuffling on the other line before he could hear the two talking. After a handful of minutes, Fuyuhiko coughed into the receiver. “She’s looking for it right now. It might have been in that’s night’s clothes, but she threw those away.”

Hajime remembered Soda puking and the splatters on her shirt and jacket. He remembered Fuyuhiko helping her out of the coat before setting it down to whisk her away to the bathroom. Hajime had taken Soda outside to puke in the bushes since Peko would likely kill him if she saw him again. He didn’t remember leaving anyone with the jacket. 

Had he let himself in with his own key that night?

“She thinks it got tossed. I’m sorry.” 

No one would have riffled through a girl’s coat and taken his key, right? 

“Hajime?”

How would they know it was his key? There was a stupid little dog key chain on them, but there wasn’t any identifying marks to show it unlocked his place. 

“Fuyuhiko, I have to do something quick. See you.”

“Uh, yeah, I-” He tossed his phone aside and rushed to his door. Upon throwing it open, he was met with an empty hallway. 

That night, Hajime didn’t record. He barricaded his bedroom door, not sure what else he could do. When he woke up, the door was open a crack, but the dresser was pressed too snug against the wall that it couldn’t be pushed open any further. He could handle that for now, until he got his landlord to change his locks. Unfortunately, that’d take a lot of convincing. Especially since he’d have to explain how he had so many keys to lose to begin with, because the landlord wouldn’t trust his parents lost the key and that’s the only one they knew about. Hajime would keep it that way in fear of getting evicted. 

He didn’t get much sleep, and debated going to class, but knew he had to. Today is tuesday. Tuesday meant Nagito would be with him in criminal justice class. Maybe, since they had their little date at the library, Hajime could muster up the courage to sit beside him in class. 

Hajime blushed as he brushed his teeth. Was their library day a date? Could he count it as one? Could he please count it as one?

He put on his two toned green tie, then left for the day. As usual, he was a little early. Half the class was there, including Nagito, who was putting down his supplies in one of the back rows like usual. He glanced up for a moment, as if he heard Hajime come in through all the chatter of other students, then gave him a smile and wave. Hajime’s heart fluttered. 

Taking a deep breath, Hajime headed up the aisle and placed his notebook on the spot beside Nagito. He sent him a smile, then set down his backpack. “Hey.”

“Hi.” Nagito sat down. He clicked his pen as Hajime took a seat beside him. “You look tired. Did you stay up too late studying?”

“Not exactly,” Hajime laughed, knowing that explaining his real situation would just serve to freak out Nagito, “I just have had some nightmares.”

“Ohhh!” Nagito hummed. “If you are having trouble with those, I heard lavender oil helps or chamomile tea. However, if you are having really bad ones, like night terrors, you’d have to go to a doctor.”

“Night terrors?”

A strange smile made its way onto Nagito’s lips, as though he was also very tired. “It’s when you are in panic while asleep or from sleep. We usually forget our dreams quickly though, or don’t wake up right away, so people sometimes record themselves to prove it. In fact, doctors usually require you to have proof like that now to know you aren’t just in it for the drugs.”

“That’s interesting. My friend actually suggested a app that does that.” He held up his phone. Nagito’s eyes glinted and he reached forward, but Hajime quickly put it away in his bag. “U-Uh, it didn’t actually work though. It shuts off in the night sometimes. Pretty useless.”

Nagito blinked before nodding. “Well, I hope you find something else that helps. I would stick to tea though. I can’t imagine the battery life that drains using an app like that.”

Hajime sighed, but agreed. He left his phone charging, but it couldn’t have been good to run it all night every night. He opened his notebook to his last page of notes, then groaned when he realised he forgot to send an email to the professor about some of the content.

“Hinata-kun?” Nagito hummed. Hajime could feel his lithe hand tap his shoulder. It felt nice, even through his jacket. “Something wrong?”

“I forgot to ask the professor something. I didn’t understand this one section of the textbook and, knowing my luck, it’ll be on the exam.” Nagito leaned over and looked at the messy handwriting Hajime was pointing out. He glided his hand over the words, examining them before pulling back.

“I think I understood that part enough to explain it to you.” Nagito replied with a smile, then giggled, “If you’d want my help, Mr. Criminal Justice major.”

Hajime blushed and huffed out, “I didn’t realise that meant I had to know everything even without my bachelor's degree, excuse my dumbassery.”

“You are excused.” Nagito hid his laugh behind his hand. The sight of his slightly squinted eyes beside crows feet was something to behold. Hajime was snapped from his thoughts when Nagito leaned over and nudged their shoulders together playfully. “I’m teasing. I can explain it now if you want.”

Don’t blow it. “Actually, I might need a bit longer than the time before class. If you don’t have any classes after this, do you want to go to Mama’s cafe? I’ll buy.”

Hajime knew he didn’t have anymore classes after this. He went on a walk after class one day. He was only wandering. However, it ended with him finding Nagito walking northwards off campus and to the train, where he boarded the one going towards a small town. He was tempted to continue his walk, but knew he didn’t want to board a train with no idea where he was going. 

Nagito bit his lip. His eyes shifted around the room before landing on the paper in front of him. “That’s sweet to offer, but you don’t want to give people the wrong impression, right?” 

Hajime’s building smile crumbled upon seeing Nagito’s shoulders hunch forward, avoiding the others gaze. 

“I mean, it was okay at the library since we were the only ones there,” Nagito offered weakly, a hand coming up to tug on a strand of his hair, “but sitting together here really can’t be doing you any favors.”

He thought he could get them behind that, but it seemed it was always dwelling in Nagito’s mind. The party. The first and only party Nagito Komaeda ever attended. The night Hajime realised he wanted to be closer to Nagito was the same night Nagito wanted nothing more than to avoid him like the plague for ‘his sake’. 

“That’s their problem then,” Hajime argued, but before he could say anything else, the professor announced the beginning of the lesson. Nagito didn’t respond, instead getting in position to take notes with that same distressed expression. Hajime leaned over and mumbled, “Think about it a little more?” 

He tried not to look over at Nagito during the class.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please if you like, leave a kudo or a comment! It inspires me more than you know ^^ Already working on the next chapter.


	4. Night Life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A... date?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this is a kinda fluffy chapter. 
> 
> The calm before the storm, if you will.
> 
> Next chapter is when certain things come to light and you'll understand what the fuck Nagito's problem is. lmao

Mama’s was too close to campus. After class, just as he was packing up and accepting the fact he would be making his journey home sooner than he was anticipating, Nagito tapped his shoulder. He was shifting his weight between his feet as he stared at the ground. He said they could go to Ivy, a coffee shop a little bit of ways away from campus. Hajime didn’t care if it was a ten hour walk. 

On the way, Nagito stayed a few paces ahead of him. He rarely turned to acknowledge Hajime until they were far enough from campus that he didn’t feel the need to act so oddly. Whenever Hajime saw him on his own, he seemed to float on air, not a care in the world. It was bizarre seeing him so uncertain and stiff, every step awkwardly placed in front of the previous. 

“You know, I really don’t care if we are seen together, right?” Hajime wanted to say, but settled for nudging their shoulders together. Nagito nudged him back shyly, tucking a stray strand of hair behind his ear. “No one is even thinking about that. It was so long ago.”

“You are sweet, Hinata-kun,” Nagito replied as he stopped in front of the cafe’s doors. He held it open for Hajime, who stepped inside reluctantly, knowing full well he wouldn’t be able to work with the conversation that just died between them. He chose a booth in the corner to ensure Nagito would be willing to talk and play around with him a bit perhaps, then headed to the counter to get a drink. Once they both had their orders, Nagito cracked open his textbook. Hajime leaned forward to look off those pages instead of digging out his own. 

He regretted getting a strawberry smoothie over tea upon getting a whiff of Nagito’s lemongrass tea. It wasn’t that he would have liked it more though; he wasn’t a big fan of tea. However, it would make him look more refined and proper in Nagito’s eyes, with any luck. Nagito might spot that they weren’t so different after all and would be more willing to be close to him. Then the next time they’d meet, Nagito would approach him without Soda or Chiaki present. Hajime liked the thought of Nagito being the one to come up to him for once. It’d make him feel less delusional over his chances with Nagito. 

“So, did you just have a hard time with the chapter, or?” Nagito flipped to the beginning of the section. Hajime wanted to be honest and tell him exactly where he had issues, but the answer would take about five minutes and then Nagito would excuse himself.

“I think it’d be best to review the whole chapter,” Hajime laughed awkwardly. Nagito raised his eyebrows at him.

“Well, I’ve got time. Let’s see how far we get.”

Nagito was a good teacher. His voice was airy and quiet, but each word was pronounced perfectly with emphasis in all the right areas. A few times, he’d pause to hum or exhale a little longer than usual, a habit as he tried to find where to start in a section. If Hajime used his imagination, he could picture sounds like it in a different scenario and now he wasn’t focusing on the textbook anymore. 

“Does that make sense, Hinata-kun?” Nagito asked as he pulled away from the pen marking he made on his textbook’s page.

He hadn’t been focussing, eyes now trained on the spot where he saw Nagito’s tongue dart out to wet his lips. “It’s a little hard to see this upside down.”

“Oh.” Nagito looked down at the book and blushed. His fingertips wrapped around the edges, ready to turn it around when Hajime stood up and walked around, plopping down to sit right beside Nagito. The boy let out a squeak, practically jumping out of his skin at the sudden presence to his right hand side. “I-I can just turn the b-”

“It’ll be easier like this, right?” Hajime asked, effectively cutting him off. “It’d be better to do this at the library, but this works too.”

“I suppose.” Nagito scratched at the base of his neck and stared down at the pages. He got back to work, and Hajime was celebrating the fact that Nagito was left-handed so there wasn’t any barrier between them. By the end of their time together, Hajime scooted only a little closer, but still tried to pay attention as much as possible. Every so often, Nagito would notice his mind wandering and would poke him with his pencil or finger, giggling with each shocked reaction from Hajime when he didn’t see it coming. Each time, Nagito seemed to unconsciously scoot a little closer until Hajime could feel their shoulders pressed closely together along with their leg. Occasionally, Nagito would bump their knees to surprise him too, which was always rewarded with another laugh. 

Once they were done, he understood his problem spots better than he did before, which he was relieved to realise once Nagito closed up his textbook. “I hope that made more sense, I’m sorry if I made you more confused.” 

“Thanks, I think I’m not as screwed as I thought I was!” Hajime joked, tapping his finger against the hardcover. “If I knew better, I’d assume you were also a criminal justice major. Well, it is also a harder level class, so it’d make sense.”

Nagito gave him a smile and took a sip of his tea, not bothering to comment on the question playing on Hajime’s tongue. It didn’t matter, he realised. He was just glad to be here and enjoying his time with Nagito. Even if he did want to know why Nagito was going to college, why he was inspired to pursue a higher education instead of settling for less, what motivates him. He could settle for learning other things. 

“Do you like your tea?” Hajime asked. “You haven’t had much of it.”

“Too busy explaining,” Nagito laughed, setting his cup down, “but it was good.”

“Sorry.” Hajime grinned sheepishly. “Do you come here a lot?”

“Ah, not really. I like the places by campus, but this place has good qualities too. I just don’t find myself in this area too often.” Hajime frowned a little at that. Nagito took the train nearby here to go home- he knew because he saw while on his walk. He couldn’t bring that up without confusing Nagito though. He didn’t want to scare him from a moment like that when he didn’t even bother to introduce him or make any sign of him spotting Nagito. That would be against the purpose of his walk in the first place. He bit his lip. 

Unless Nagito wasn’t going home that day.

Where was he going then?

“Makes sense. I don’t come out here too much, if I’m honest.” Hajime gestured out the window. “I do know there’s a place that has good food a decent walk away. Want to get something?” 

Nagito shifted in his seat. “I… guess that’d be okay.”

Hajime grinned. “Perfect. Let’s go.”

Walking beside Nagito was a little easier this time around. While the nervous boy kept looking over his shoulders at every moment, he was walking close and even answered Hajime’s dumb small talk with equally dumb responses. It was nice. Hajime didn’t understand why he was so scared of fucking up around Nagito to begin with until his memory replayed past events, leaving his cheeks red. 

He looked at Nagito from the corner of his eyes, noticing how the sky had become darker and the neon signs around them sparkled in his grey eyes. His lips were parted in wonder as he looked around the city as though he had never seen it before. His shoulders relaxed and it looked like all tension was released from his body in the darkness settling around them despite the large crowds of people moving all around, too big to be able to pick out anyone he was watching for, also known as any and all students. 

Hajime felt something tickle his palm and glanced down to find Nagito’s hand gripping loosely to his fingers. His feet stuttered in their step, but continued to carry himself on. Nagito looked as though he hadn’t noticed that, nor the fact their hands were touching. With a gulp, Hajime held his hand back, eyes averting to look at some signs across the street instead of at the small smile on Nagito’s lips as he looked around like a child. 

Nagito liked being alone, and he adored darkness. He hated attention despite his stark white hair and laugh like angel bells always drawing stares of admiration. He longed for the smell of books and brewing tea. He wasn’t used to the city, but it’s beauty was unlike any description in a novel he’s buried his nose into. 

Hajime wondered if he liked the darkness because it was harder to see him. However, if anyone was paying attention, they could pick out his blinding smile as he turned to Hajime. 

“So, what’s the place called?”

“It’s just ahead.” Hajime pointed to the sign. They headed over, and Hajime slipped his hand from Nagito in order to hold the door open for him. 

“Such a gentleman,” Nagito commented as he stepped into the restaurant. Hajime followed his smile like he was under a spell as they got a seat towards the back once more. They ordered and Hajime knew the conversation would lull if he didn’t think of something. His mind ran through topics when he remembered the book Nagito helped him find. He only read a bit of it, but he was sure Nagito would love talking about it. 

“So.” Nagito cut him off before he could speak. He settled his elbows on the table, hands holding his chin up as he stared across the table to Hajime. “What kinds of things do you like to do besides studying?” 

“Oh! Uh, well, I guess I’m kind of boring. I like watching movies at home, theatres are too crowded with kids. Playing video games is fun.”

“What kind do you like?”

“I mostly just play PC games,” Hajime answered, “or multiplayer ones. It’s not very fun playing alone, even if most of my friends kick my ass.”

“We should play sometime. You’d beat me without fail,” Nagito joked, “since I’m only experienced with about three phone games and that’s about it. I’ve been meaning to play more.”

That wasn’t very Nagito. He didn’t seem like the type to want to busy himself with videogames when he could be doing… reading and stuff. Did he do much else?

“We should.” Hajime made a mental note to ask him to come over sometime once his… issue was solved. Or… Would it be better if someone was over? Would the culprit stop? Was he really thinking of freaking Nagito out with his assumptions about a stalker when he was only just now beginning to open up a bit more? Or maybe Nagito would believe him, experience the incidents himself, and would offer wise suggestions on how to take care of the issue? “What do you like to do?”

“Reading.” The obvious answer first. “I… like reading mystery novels the most, but nonfiction is always fun too. I’ve been learning how to do small things too, like cooking, sewing… I like cleaning a lot.”

“What else?” Hajime asked, sensing a sort of tension to his words. He always seemed to be watching himself. He… must not trust Hajime too much. Or his other hobbies were embarrassing. 

Nagito coughed a little and reached for his drink. “I take walks a lot. Mostly at night, since I’m a bit of a night owl.”

That’s not what it really was, but Hajime didn’t push. Pushing would end their time sooner. “Maybe I should join you sometime.”

“If you’d like, but it’s usually pretty late when I go out. We don’t live very close either.” Hajime twitched. 

“You know where I live?” 

The question was mostly out of surprise. He hadn’t remembered ever inviting Nagito over, and none of his friends were close with him. It wasn’t too hard to believe that Nagito would see a paper randomly about it or see him entering his house since it wasn’t far from campus, but he was certain he would have seen Nagito. 

“I was walking one night and you were drunk off your ass,” Nagito replied cooly, “I watched from across the street as some people helped you inside.” 

That’s embarrassing. “Sorry you had to see that.”

“It was kind of funny,” Nagito commented, “you were ranting about how they were kidnapping you and your friend looked ready to punch you.”

Sorry Fuyuhiko. 

The rest of the dinner was talkative. Hajime learned Nagito didn’t like sweet things, was a big fan of dogs and wanted one someday, and seemed to like dodging questions with questions turning the conversation back on learning more about Hajime. Still, progress was progress, and each time he answered, Nagito seemed more comfortable. 

“It’s getting a little late and I have a bit of homework,” Nagito finally said as he stood, putting tip money on the table, “I should get going.”

“Let me walk you home?” Hajime offered, standing as well. 

Nagito stared at him for a moment, then shook his head. “I live further back than you do, so why don’t I walk you?”

He’d settle for that. “Alright.”

The walk was nice. Hajime reached out and held Nagito’s hand, who accepted it even as the city began to fade around them and they entered back into the general radius of the campus. Hajime led him onto his street in case Nagito had forgotten, slowing his pace just a little in order to extend their comfortable silence. Few fireflies lit up ever so often in the darkness of people’s yards. 

Hajime stopped at his house, looking cold and uninviting in the dark. He briefly wondered why anyone would want to bother the poor soul living in those bland walls. 

“This is your stop,” Nagito commented with a hum as he began to slip his hand away, “I’ll see you in class Thursday?” 

Hajime clutched his hand. Before his nerves got the best of him, he leaned over and kissed Nagito’s pink cheek, as fast as his heart was beating. With that, he pulled his hand away and nervously tugged at his tie. 

“I-I’ll see you Thursday then.” 

Nagito’s hand moved to his cheek, smile turning wobbly as he looked away as well. “You… Have a nice night, Hinata-kun.”

Later, Nagito posted another picture. It was taken of the tea he had at the cafe when Hajime wasn’t paying attention. Beside it was the corner of his textbook. 

‘Tried out new tea and had a lovely ‘date’.’

Hajime liked the post.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave kudos or comments if you liked it! I really love hearing feedback, so don't hesitate!
> 
> Next chapter: What the fuck actually happened to make their relationship now so weird? Why is Hajime crushing on Nagito? What is Nagito's fucking problem? All that and more will be answered.


	5. A Recipe For Godhood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hajime and Nagito have a second date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me - How do I make the contents of this chapter vague as fuck  
> me- *writes that shit as the chapter summary*  
> me- perfect.
> 
> Also, this chapter is longer than half of this fic. I'm crying.

Praise his rapidly beating heart for keeping him awake all night. Hajime tossed and turned in his sheets, every so often breaking into a small laugh of joy as the events that ended hours ago played in his mind. He had homework to get done and classes in the morning, but none of that seemed to break him from the spell he was still under. Could he call it a spell if he was willingly drinking the koolaid?

He couldn’t manage sleep, but he was able to sit up and stare at his empty wall across the room. He wasn’t allowed to hang up pictures, but he always wondered what he’d pin there if he was allowed. There wasn’t anything that could come to mind that wouldn’t be removed in minutes.

A memory beckoned him from the depths of his mind, and he accepted it’s call. It was freshman year, his first ever party when after drinking enough to feel a little woozy, he sat in the bathroom with his hands in his lap, eyes glued to a cheap painting of a lake and treeline. His leg bounced, waiting impatiently to see if he’d lose his lunch or if his body was strong enough to hold all the alcohol he forced into his system. 

There was an annoyed knock at the door and a girl’s shrill voice. Lazily, Hajime stood, checking to see if that made his stomach contents come up. When it didn’t, he left the bathroom and walked past her to join his circle of friends playing Would You Rather in the dining room. To his relief, they decided they had a little too much too fast and were now playing Truth or Dare. Easy. 

Sonia’s eyes sparkled as he entered the room. “You came back!”

She sounded surprised. He must have looked as horrible as he felt. He sat down beside her and gave a weak shrug. “I guess I wasn’t as sick as I thought?”

“Yeah, no more of that for you,” Fuyuhiko announced in a way that suggested no budging on his end. Hajime wasn’t certain he needed that order. 

“Since you are here, truth or dare?” Teruteru asked while licking his lips. Hajime didn’t trust him one bit, but wanted to get his blood pumping a bit more from movement. If he managed to get a good dare where he had to walk around, he could pick up a glass from the kitchen to get a good amount of cold sink water in his system. 

“Dare, I guess.” After he said that, he prayed to god he wasn’t asked to do shots. 

“I dare you to get someone’s number outside of this group through the method of… seduction.” Oh. That wasn’t a bad dare. He didn’t even specify who the target had to be.

“Seriously?” Soda screeched. “I had to fucking streak and he has to do that?” 

“Shut up, idiot,” Fuyuhiko grumbled, “it was a dare. Hajime, accept or take a double dare.”

Last time Hajime took a double dare, he almost got arrested. Besides, it didn’t really matter when the first dare wasn’t that hard. “I’ll take the dare.”

Suddenly, Hajime was pulled from his daydream by a door closing. At first, he thought it was his parents coming home late, but then he remembered he lived alone, far from his parent’s home and far from any noise. He glanced at his dresser which he had forgotten to move in place. Soft footsteps were echoing as the person made their way into the hall, slowly headed to Hajime’s room. 

“D-D-“ Hajime stuttered, and the steps froze, “Don’t come any closer! The police are on their way!” 

It was a bluff, but the sound of running and the door being thrown open made his mind race. The past sounds were soft and might have been played off as house noises, but that was very real. Hajime scrambled up to look out his window, but it was too late. His stalker had vanished. 

Quietly, Hajime moved the dresser in place, then stayed up all night. As he sat in bed, fear gripping his heart, his thumb strayed over his contacts. In the end, he didn’t seek comfort from anyone. 

When Thursday rolled around, Hajime had dark circles under his eyes. He tried to find a place to nap earlier, or someone to stay with for a day or two, but there was no one able or willing to have him come crash. Left to his own devices, he placed his bag beside Nagito’s and flopped in his seat, fully intending to fall asleep and later beg Nagito for his notes to copy.

“You look like you have one foot in the grave.” Nagito whistled, reaching out to place a gentle hand on his forehead. “Something wrong?” 

“I… my neighbors have this annoying new cat.” 

“A cat?” 

“He keeps making noise at night and I can’t sleep. I’ve been asking around for some help, but it’s useless.” Hajime leaned into Nagito’s touch before his hand was pulled away. Nagito hummed in thought. The professor was usually ten minutes late, so they had more than enough time to brainstorm or whatever came of this. Hajime just wished he could appreciate his time with Nagito, but he was exhausted. 

Hajime folded his hands in front of him and laid his head down. It was a little uncomfortable with his blazer on, but he snuggled into the crook of his elbows and let out a long sigh. “Wake me up if Mr. Sagawa sees me.”

“I will.” Nagito placed a hand on his head lightly, stroking down short strands of hair sticking up. He repeated the motion and Hajime released a small sigh. “Try and sleep some. I can give you the gist later.”

“Thanks.” 

Hajime’s eyes flickered around the living room, though it now resembled a nightclub with the bright flashing lights and huge speakers. Students he recognized from around campus were grinding against each other or throwing their heads back to guzzle down alcohol. He loosened his tie around his neck as he surveyed the crowd, deciding against going to the gyrating bodies since it’d be too hard to coax one out to give him their number. 

He looked to the people standing by the wall or walking around slowly to take in the sweaty bodies and beautiful faces of girls doing a little bit too much romping around for attention. Nothing seemed to catch his eye until he spotted someone sitting down on an unoccupied couch. His expression was uncomfortable to say the least. 

He held a red cup which he swished around in one hand, and the other tugged at a strand of his hair as he scanned the room, as if looking for someone, but rapidly losing hope. That’d be the perfect person to ‘seduce’, as he seemed to already be let down by someone. People, especially during a heartbreak, had a tendency to cling onto the next person to show them the slightest hint of attention. Hajime knew this because it was very true to what he did, sadly. 

“Hey,” Hajime greeted as he took a seat beside the man. He left room between them to not scare him off, but leaned into the other’s space, “I haven’t seen you by campus before. I’m Hajime Hinata.”

The boy gave him a smile, eyes shining with familiarity, but it could very well have been joy of having someone to talk to. If Hajime’s eyes weren’t deceiving him, he could see a flush to the man’s cheeks. He must have had a few drinks in him as well, which might make the task easier. It was already seeming like a cake walk since the man, glinting eyes and wild hair, was attractive in the pink and blue lights. “Nagito Komaeda. I’m a freshman, so that might be why.” 

“Same here,” Hajime admitted, then gestured to the red solo cup in Nagito’s lithe hand, “but don’t say it outloud if you don’t want to get busted.” 

Nagito’s lips tugged upward as he shook his cup once more. “It’s water.” 

He felt a bit jealous that he’d be the one waking up to painful headaches in the morning. 

“Don’t tell me you were underaged drinking, Hinata-kun,” Nagito gasped, leaning forward with a sparkle in his eyes, “how naughty.” 

Hajime grinned in return and placed a finger to his lips. “You won’t tell anyone though.”

“Is that so?” Nagito asked with a laugh. He bit his lower lip as he appraised Hajime’s flushed cheeks and messed up shirt. “What makes you sure I’m not biding my time until the police kick down the door?”

He wasn’t sure, but because of the dare, he had to make assumptions he normally wouldn’t say out loud. “I have a feeling you are enjoying my company more than that. Instead of seeing me taken away in handcuffs, I’m sure you’d rather take me home in them.”

Nagito stifled a snicker, eyes roaming Hajime before they rolled and he looked away. “Haven’t heard a line like that before. Am I supposed to read you your rights now, or would you like to save that for later?”

“Before you frisk me, preferably.” Hajime hummed, tracing his fingers on Nagito’s arm. 

Nagito’s lips twitched, and his hand came to Hajime’s wrinkled, tan tie. He ran a finger down the satin, humming at the smoothness of it. “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you.”

“I really hope you don’t expect me to be quiet.” Was it bad he hoped that Nagito didn’t smile that way to anyone else? He wasn’t sure, but he could see Teruteru in the corner of his eyes walking into the living room. He had to wrap up the dare fast before he was outed to Nagito and forced to do a double dare. Plus, he might actually want to call Nagito outside the realms of dares and didn’t want his cover blown in fear of scaring Nagito. 

His partner did seem to notice his gaze wandering, though he didn’t pull away from playing with his tie. 

Hajime gave him a smile and pulled his hand away. “Sorry, forgot I needed to do something. So officer, want to add me stealing your number to my list of crimes and you can take me down town another day?”

Nagito frowned a little, hand tightening around the base of his tie. “And what would I get in return?” 

What would he get? His number in return. Hajime sighed out a little as he remembered he left his phone at the table, and he never seemed to remember his phone number perfectly, much less while still woozy from alcohol. Should he ask Nagito to come with him? That’d be a little awkward. 

Before he could straighten his thoughts, Nagito leaned forward and pressed their lips together. Hajime froze in shock, instinctively wishing to pull away before he stopped himself. Nagito was… warm. His lips moved against his like melted chocolate, but the taste was different. It had a tinge of sweetness and something else that made Hajime lean forward, no longer needing to be held in place by the tight grip on his tie. His mind was muddled, but his hands moved on their own accord to cling onto a part of Nagito’s jacket. Occasionally, he felt the tickle of Nagito’s hair on the back of his hand. It grounded him in the breathtaking kiss and gave him something to focus on from driving himself mad in the movements. 

Hajime had been kissed before, even kissed suddenly like this before, but it never felt so addicting. Nagito’s lips were like candy, but his sinful tongue easing into his mouth, laced with drugs he had always been warned about. Nagito’s hand wandered from his tie, dipping lower before gliding past his belt to rest on his side firmly. His grip slowly tightened, but Hajime allowed himself to be tugged a little closer. The room was warmed to begin with, but now he felt it running down his spine when Nagito hummed encouragingly to the feeling of Hajime’s hands beginning to explore down his chest. He felt their kiss break by Nagito’s lips quivering, then breaking into a smile as he pulled away. 

“I guess I’m a bit of a thief myself,” Nagito mused as he reached into the green jacket he was wearing, “one moment.”

“Hajime!” 

Hajime blinked out of his reverie to find Teruteru before him. Suddenly, his friend snagged him up by the arm. His brain felt like it was rattling around in his head as he was jolted upright. All he could comprehend before getting dragged from the room by his wide eyed friend was the words, “Not him.”

“Hinata-kun, it’s time to wake up.” Hajime twitched and burrowed further into his folded arms. He felt the fingers carding through his hair stop for a moment, though he wasn’t sure if they were always there or if they had come back recently and that is what slowly stirred him into consciousness. 

“Hinata-kun, the building is on fire.” That’s why it felt warm and toasty. That or his blazer and the school heater were setting his skin ablaze. 

“Your mother is in the hospital.” Hajime groaned, fighting the urge to hit away Nagito’s hand, which began to poke at him obnoxiously.

Hajime felt his hairs stand on end when he felt a cool breath down his neck, caressing the shell of his ear. He gulped, about to move his head up to see what Nagito’s deal was, but instead felt a sudden sound stir past his lips from a firm hand coming to rest on his knee. He could hear a hum in his ear before a whisper. 

“Hajime.”

“I-I’m up, I’m up!” Hajime growled as he shoved his chair back and quickly stood. 

Nagito gazed at him with amusement clear on his face, then they fell and eventually landed on his backed up satchel. “I can see that.”

The tone in his voice suggested something Hajime was sure he didn’t mean, but as he gathered his things, he took a quick glance downward to see Nagito had truly only made a passing comment and wasn’t suggesting anything inappropriate. Of course, only his mind would branch to things like that. 

“Did you get enough sleep?” Nagito asked as he walked around him and walked down the aisle of desks. Hajime followed. 

“For now.” He would ask around a bit more to see if he could stay with anyone, but after tonight, he needed to start getting his usual sleep. He’d barricade every door in the house if he had to. 

Nagito held the door open for him, then followed him out of the hall and into the daylight, which Hajime recoiled from immediately. He fell back into Nagito, but managed to catch himself before disaster.

“It seems like you are really wiped,” Nagito mumbled as he stepped around him. He sighed and ran a hand through his messy white hair before looking down the road towards the houses in the distance, “which is a shame. I was hoping you’d take me on another date.”

“D-Date?” Hajime squeaked, which was received with a confident, blinding smile. 

“You haven’t corrected me since my post a few days ago, and I know you saw it. Unless you’d want to try and call it something else, I think it fits just fine.”

“I…” Hajime scratched the base of his neck. “It is, but… after what happened, you’ve been kind of adamant about-”

“The guy is like a psycho!” Teruteru exclaimed as he dragged Hajime into the kitchen. The moment he was freed, Hajime fixed himself a glass of water, annoyed he hadn’t completed his dare and gotten the cute boy’s number. “My mom told me to stay well away from him when I moved up here!”

“Your mother?” Hajime asked in an unimpressed voice. He swallowed down water, watching his friend rush around the kitchen. 

“Yes,” Teruteru grumbled, “she has a book club and… lowkey, some ‘confidential’ stuff about some of the ladies’ works come up in complaints. He grew up a town over from me, and he’s… he has a rap sheet, from what I’ve heard, and it’s all…”

“He has broken the law?” Hajime asked, shaking his head. “No. He wouldn’t.”

“... Okay, that was a lie. But the rest of this isn’t. Komaeda has been at least accused of multiple cases of weird shit. Like following people home at night.”

“He could have lived in the same direction.”

“He’s targeted people and sent them letters and gifts.”

“Uh… That’s a thing people sometimes do when they have a crush?”

“Hajime.” 

“Yes?”

Teruteru took a deep breath. “Are you really not taking the advice from someone you’ve known from half a year and putting your trust in someone you just met?”

“Teru, it’s not that I don’t believe you,” Hajime began, setting down his glass of water, “but you kind of do the same things. It’s borderline harassment.” 

Teruteru glared at him for a moment before his shoulders sagged in defeat. “Fine. I’ll prove it to you. Let’s get back to the game.”

“So I’m not allowed to change my mind?” Hajime shook his head, coming back to the situation at hand. Nagito was waiting in front of him with a cute smile, eyebrows raised expectantly before his peer sighed. “You really are tired… You like watching movies at home, right? Then let’s have a movie date.”

“That sounds perfect.” Hajime’s heart fluttered at the thought, then ran a mental checklist in his mind of what he had to offer to his guest. He had popcorn and chips, a few beers, and some sodas. It wasn’t much, but he was sure Nagito wouldn’t complain. Next time, since if this was happening now and it most definitely would occur again if Hajime had anything to say about it, he would have a box of tea ready for Nagito in the kitchen. 

They walked to his place together quietly as Hajime’s brain continued to wander off. He wondered what would happen if this continued and Nagito didn’t shy away like he had previously. What even changed? Did it really matter? 

No, it didn’t matter. What mattered was one day sharing his keys back with his friends, then making an extra for Nagito. It meant the world to one day open up his kitchen cupboard to spot a cup with no labels, but clearly was dubbed ‘Nagito’s cup’. It was important that he’d call up Nagito every once and a while to remind him of a shirt or coat he left the night before. It made his heart swell at the thought of having more dirt dishes than usual piled in the sink and way less cereal in his favorite brand’s box. 

He wanted that with Nagito. 

Nagito took off his shoes when he entered the house. Hajime hoped it wasn’t too cold, but decided he could just bring a blanket over to cuddle under. 

Would they be cuddling? 

“W-Would you like anything?” Hajime stammered, gesturing to where his kitchen was, though he doubted Nagito could derive much from his flailing hands. “I’ve got snacks and sodas. Beers too.”

“A water would be great,” Nagito replied as he pushed his shoes towards the door. Hajime nodded and headed off to the kitchen. He filled two glasses of water, then carried them to the living room where Nagito had already made himself at home. He had removed his jacket and vest and laid them on the far end of the table and placed a throw blanket on his lap. Nagito already had the tv on and was using the remote to access the apps. When he spotted Hajime, he lifted on the end of the blanket. “I have a TV like this at home. What kinds of movies do you watch?”

By the time Teruteru and Hajime got back to the dining room, several others began to play. Someone announced Kokichi’s turn- Hajime really couldn’t remember ever knowing that kid, but he could remember Teruteru refusing to ask Truth or Dare, instead immediately jumping to: “I dare you to steal someone’s phone for me to prove they are cheating.”

Kokichi grinned. He strolled over to Teruteru, and was somehow shorter than him by a tiny margin. With a creepy giggle, the boy folded his hands together. “That’s it? Piece of cake. Pick them out.”

“Kokici, that’s against the law,” A friend of the kid shouted from the other end of the table. A quiet, uncomfortable looking kid agreed, but did nothing to stop the dare from continuing. Hajime expected to wait a good hour before the shortie returned, but he was genuinely shocked when Kokichi walked in less than five minutes later. 

“I thought by your description that he’d be harder to find!” Kokichi laughed as he tossed the phone to Teruteru. “Turns out wacky white hair is hard to come by- who would have thought… And don’t turn that phone off. I don’t actually know the code, so if it’s closed, good luck getting your drama fix.”

“You didn’t get the passcode?” His friend finally spoke up, voice littered with concern. “Did you… steal it directly out of his hand?”

“Shumai, you think that lowly of me?” Kokichi whimpered, placing a hand to his heart. He wiped an imaginary tear before he turned back to Hajime and Teruteru. “Yeah, he looked pretty panicked when I took off with it. I expect you have maybe five minutes.”

“Okay, Hajime. First sign of something fishy.” Teruteru clicked around the phone. “He has no games. Nothing.”

“That doesn’t mean he’s a felon.”

Teruteru grumbled, beginning to dig into the phone. Hajime felt a horrible coil in his gut, but found himself looming over the others shoulder in order to see. Nagito’s call history was all unmarked numbers, as were all his texts. His social media was logged on, but a check of all of them proved nothing to show for. Beside that app was his notes app. Again, nothing but a grocery list, a few jotted down notes for memory, and a reminder to head to Shibuya next month, but no reason was stated. 

Nagito selected a mystery movie upon Hajime insisting he was likely going to fall asleep as soon as it began. He sank into the couch cushions and closed his eyes. Nagito leaned against him, resting his head on his shoulder in a way that once seemed impossible.

“Hinata-kun,” He mumbled, nuzzling his cheek against Hajime’s shoulder, “we met a year and a half ago.”

“About,” Hajime replied, exhaustion dripping in his tone. His eyes felt heavy, but the weight lifted when he felt Nagito’s hand on his leg. 

“I keep mentioning it. I thought with a reminder… you wouldn’t stay, but… that way of thinking ended three months ago.” Nagito squeezed his thigh. “It ended at the beginning of this current semester.”

Teruteru clicked on the photos app. Immediately, files came into view and a large number at the top claimed there were six hundred and thirty eight pictures exactly on his phone. The albums were without names, so Teruteru clicked on the full gallery. 

The first few pictures were of street signs, then a group of numbers. Perhaps markers to remember how he got to the party, but one sign looked familiar to Hajime. He slowly reached for the phone and held it close. He scrolled up, and his heart stopped in his chest. 

There were pictures of him. Hundreds. There was him during orientation, walking around with a scared look on his face at the crowds around him. There was him getting out of the pool with his friends cropped out. Photos of him in his living room. Pictures of him getting undressed in his bedroom after a long night. Photos of him in his grossest moments, like when he sneezed out a huge glob of goo and wiped it on his pant leg. 

He couldn’t process any words Teruteru was yelling, too shocked by the photos that kept coming. He only was pulled away from the screen when it was yanked from his hand and he came face to face with Nagito again, this time as pale as a ghost before his cheeks reddened and water welled in his eyes. Hajime watched as he fled the room, but he didn’t tell them what he saw on the phone. Teruteru didn’t ask. 

“Hajime, we are one and the same, aren’t we?”

Hajime froze as Nagito sat up, then moved to straddle Hajime’s hips. His eyes met Nagito’s as he sank his weight down and rested his hands on Hajime’s shoulders. 

“What are you talking about?” He felt fear grip his heart at the smile that passed over Nagito’s lips. It was so soft and kind, but his sharp eyes were reading into his soul and extracting all the confirmation he sought out. 

“You followed me to the train station a month ago.” No. 

“Before that, you memorised my schedule, and arrived at the coffee shop and library every day I would go. I deviated from my schedule three times to confirm this, and I was correct.” That’s not true. 

“You are sitting in on the criminal justice course you took last semester, and are taking advantage of the fact I don’t take the exams in the same room to duck out on those days and avoid my suspicion.” That’s not right. He wasn’t supposed to know.

“I wanted to contain myself a bit better,” Nagito breathed, eyes darkening and seeming to swirl like a hypnotist’s coin, forcing Hajime closer, “I didn’t want to spring this on you so suddenly, and end up scaring you, but… Being here… Being invited here for the first time…”

Nagito gasped as he bowed his head, the tips of his ears bright red. He pressed himself as closely to Hajime as he could, almost flush to him as he bit his lip. He leaned and began peppering Hajime’s quivering jaw in kisses, sucking on the junction between his neck lightly before moving to his ear.

“You wanted me to continue, didn’t you?” Nagito mumbled, then bit his earlobe. Hajime choked back a gasp as Nagito’s hands roamed his chest, eager to the point of being almost frantic. “You wanted my attention.”

“Nagito,” Hajime whispered as his hands settled on his hips.

“You don’t need to worry, Hinata-kun,” Nagito sighed as he pulled away to push his hips downward roughly, “you’ve always had my attention. I just wasn’t sure still, I’m sorry. I needed to be sure you felt the same and that I was the only one.”

“What?” Hajime bit back a groan as Nagito’s hips continued to roll towards his. He was getting distracted. His head was hazy and running, but above all thoughts and reasons was the desire to hear more of the soft pants leaving Nagito’s lips. 

“You’ve known it was me all along, right?” Nagito laughed bitterly. “I’m really not good with keeping things in the dark, I get too excited. I don’t need to hide anymore, right, Hinata-kun? You’ve never been afraid of rumors spreading, nor Teruteru spilling the beans once again… how annoying that was…”

Nagito paused for a moment to unbutton the top few buttons of his shirt suggestively, then left the rest up for whenever Hajime’s hands returned to life. Instead, he cupped Hajime’s cheeks and leaned down to nuzzle his nose with a glowing smile. “It can be like we’ve always wanted. Devotion, passion, endless love… I am perfect for you.”

Hajime swallowed a lump that was forming in his throat like a dry swallowed pill, and it’s affected were immediate. His lips fumbled against Nagito’s with new found urgency, his heart swelling with the joy of reciprocation from the boy he thought he couldn’t touch. The boy he thought had given up on him the night of the party. It was all an illusion. Nagito loved him. 

His hands clutched Nagito’s hips tightly, fingertips digging into his pale skin. Nagito grunted in pain, but made no move to pull away. His muscles felt malleable under Hajime’s grip, as if his entire being craved nothing more than to be formed to Hajime’s perfect sculpture, a perfect work of art that couldn’t be replaced in a million years. He wondered how the rest of Nagito would bend and bow for the wish of filling Hajime’s every desire.

Hajime’s eyes trailed away for a single moment. They landed on the pile of clothes on the table, and it was only then he noticed Nagito’s handkerchief was poking out between the vest and coat. He eyed the stitch patterns along the center of the scarf and old blueberry stain when he suddenly felt he recognized the orange stain. He could practically feel the satin in his hand as he remembered his old favorite tie, one he had to throw away what felt like ages ago. 

He looked up to Nagito. “I can be perfect for you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So like how do you write stalkers confessing to stalkers...? Asking for a friend.
> 
> I hope you liked this read! There isn't much left to this now, a chapter or two and, if y'all want, sexy times because I am trash first and a writer second. Leave a comment or a kudos if you liked it! It really means a lot!


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